Percy's Girls
by chicagochi4183
Summary: They were always different. If Molly was the sun, Lucy was the moon. But they would always be Percy's Girls.
1. Chapter 1

Babies

Percy met Audrey rather by accident. He rarely entered muggle London, but he needed to address something with the muggle Minister. She had entered the Minister's office by mistake, looking for an Ambassador's. He had immediately been taken by the beautiful woman, with her wild hair and friendly eyes. She was soft, kind, and most-importantly, just as driven as he was. Before he knew it Percy found himself purchasing a telephone so he could call her, buying more muggle clothes so he could go out with her, and trying to outdo her with tales from his very important job. They fell into an easy rhythm, competing to see who would be promoted first. He won that, of course, but he also won Audrey's respect. It wasn't too long before he won her heart.

Their wedding was perhaps a bit stuffy, with its ornate decorations and strict seating charts, but it suited them both perfectly. They settled into a beautiful home with a wild garden just a hill away. Before Audrey got pregnant, they would run out there sometimes just to roll around in the grass, look at the flowers, and laugh. Percy thought his life was perfect.

When Audrey got pregnant, Percy got a well-timed promotion. With more time for himself thanks to his new leverage, Percy did everything he thought a supportive husband should. July 25th, beautiful bouncing Molly was born. As soon as they'd seen her, her old name had gone out the window. They'd both agreed on Guinevere in a conversation long ago, were their first child to be a girl. However, when they caught sight of the round face and the happy blue-grey eyes, they both knew. She looked just like her Nana Molly. As Bill hadn't named either of his daughters after their mother, Percy felt it was only right. And, so as not to hurt any feelings, they took Audrey's mother's name, Elaine, for her middle name.

Molly was the perfect baby. Even from very small, she almost never woke up in the middle of the night. When she fussed, it was always quiet, and matter-of-fact. She didn't make any noise that didn't serve a purpose, and stopped when she got the attention she wanted. It may have taken a while to get her to bed, but she was a sweet, if strangely well behaved, adorable child. As a baby, Molly loved it when people would read to her. Audrey read her a host of children's books, and Molly would gurgle and clap for each rhyme. Even more than books, Molly loved people. She would reach out for new people whenever she saw them. When she learned to crawl, she would crawl over to wherever someone was, and grab their leg to hoist herself up, reaching up expectantly for them to carry her.

For a year, Molly Elaine Weasley was the light of her father's life. She was beautiful, easygoing, and happy. Her hair grew in just as wild as Audrey's, although with Percy's unmistakable shade of red. Her face was always round and jolly and Percy had never seen a lovelier baby. Percy was sure that he had finally reached perfection.

Audrey's second pregnancy was a bit more complicated. She too, had earned a promotion, but the harder hours made it difficult on her as time went on. She would always wonder if this was why Lucy was born early, February 5th instead of March 2nd as was predicted. Lucy came out looking even smaller than Percy had expected, although Audrey's muggle doctor had warned that premature babies tended to be tiny. She was mostly bald, with her eyes pinched shut. When she was placed in Audrey's arms, she had curled up in a tiny little ball, and Percy thought that if she got any smaller she'd disappear.

Once her health checked out, there was the problem of naming her. The couple had been so sure they were going to have another Molly, a baby that immediately seemed to name itself, that they hadn't prepared a list of names. Lucy was not that kind of baby. Being so small, her features were difficult to discern. She didn't look like much of anything, and the couple had nothing to fall back on. It was so unlike them that the embarrassment crippled them more than the shock.

For her first few minutes, Lucy remained just the baby. Percy knew that outside the room most of his family and Audrey's would be there to meet his new baby. He wished Lucy had needed more of a check-up, giving him more time to stall. He couldn't bear the thought of saying "We haven't decided yet" and facing George's mirth, although he was happy that his brother had finally returned to himself. A young nurse, sensing the parents' discomfort, grabbed hold of the girl. She smiled as she bounced the tiny child, the baby remaining for the most part oblivious.

"Little beautiful bouncing baby. What a beautiful little baby girl." she said, cooing. At that, Audrey smiled.

"Little Lucy, Lucy Darlene" Audrey sighed, looking at Percy. "Darlene means little darling. Darling little Lucy." Percy smiled. He had no problems with the name Lucy, indeed it seemed to fit the tiny baby better than anything he could think of.

Little Lucy had the biggest set of lungs Percy had ever stood to witness. It seemed that she thought her task was to cry every time Molly wasn't. As two-year-old Molly began to speak in sentences and demand a big-girl bed, Lucy shrieked happily, sadly, or perhaps simply to hear the sound of her own voice. It always made Molly cross when her sister would cry, and she'd always try to fix it. Several times Percy had to stop her from yelling back at the crying baby, telling her she'd once been the same way. He felt bad for the lie, but that was what parents tended to say.

As the girls got older, Lucy always stayed small. Molly was never quite chubby, but she was certainly rounder than Lucy, who was a little beanpole. When Molly was three and Lucy was two, Lucy could still wear some of her onesies. She'd also gotten Audrey's wild hair, but hers kept her mother's color, kissing the line between blonde and brown. Both girls' hair grew very quickly. After foolishly betting Audrey that he could take care of keeping their hair in line, Percy almost chopped it all off when he found himself getting Lucy's third hair cut that month. He wondered if it was early magic or if her hair was just stubborn and quick to grow.

It was hard to bring oneself to cut Molly's hair. The three year old, who could already read and was trying to learn to write, had hair down to her waist all thick and red. Coworkers, family, and strangers alike commented on it. The family's favorite joke was how Molly was a miniature of her Nana. Lucy's hair possessed no such grace. The thick hair was kept firmly at her shoulder line, although that did nothing to disguise its largeness.

As the girls got older, Percy began to notice the differences in their personalities. While Molly took up reading and even writing quickly, Lucy was more of an artist. Her motor skills were good, but she'd rather color than read or write. In an odd turn of events, Lucy was also much quieter than her sister. Despite being a very loud baby, Lucy would shy away from strangers and adults she had not seen in a while. Molly's personality was very outgoing and cheerful, although Percy noted that she had a bit of the know-it-all hidden within her. Lucy, on the other hand, was demure and often a bit sullen. The two were impossible to separate.

Everywhere Molly went Lucy was sure to go, and Percy never knew if it was because Molly wanted Lucy to come or because Lucy didn't want to be left behind. They would go on adventures in the house together, Molly bossing Lucy around and Lucy racing to take care of her duties. When Bill told him to enjoy it while it lasted, he chuckled. He couldn't imagine a world where his girls didn't get along.

Percy lived for the quiet nights. He loved his family, but he especially loved being at home with his girls. Between him and Audrey they were domestic enough to get dinner sorted, and then he'd sit and listen to the radio. Molly would often come sit next to him, reading the children's section of the Daily Prophet with wide toddler eyes. Every so often she'd lean over to tell him something about what she was reading, very matter-of-factly. On the ground, Lucy would lean by his feet, happily coloring. She had more coloring books than Percy knew what do with and they were all full of her colors.

Whenever Molly would tell them something, Lucy would dutifully stop to listen, a smile stretching across her face whether she understood or not. She'd wait until Molly was finished to resume her coloring. They had many pictures of this moment. Sometimes the girls would gather around Audrey, but it was more often around Percy. Both of them, it seemed, were real daddy's girls.

Sometimes, on the rare days when both Audrey and Percy could be home with the girls at the same time, they would take the girls over the hill to the wild garden. They could tell it had once belonged to a family as none of the flowers were too unkempt and there was a lot of open space. They considered it theirs, especially Molly and Lucy. They would run all over the place picking flowers. Molly would bring the flowers to Audrey to braid into her hair, while Lucy would make herself little bracelets and make Molly little crowns.

Percy's favorite picture of all time was of them at this age. It was after one of few times cutting both girls' hair. He took them over the hill to the garden, and he and Audrey were having a marvelous time taking pictures of them. The girls were having a blast as well: throwing grass, shrieking, and making Percy scourgify their clothes several times. For once, neither adult minded. Percy wished he could lock the moment forever in his heart. He couldn't believe he and Audrey had literally made two people, and he got to keep them. He leaned over and kissed her then, getting lost in the moment. The sharp giggle from his wife distracted him, but when he looked up he saw the moment just as Audrey captured it with the camera.

The girls were walking towards their parents holding hands. Both had lost their shoes. It was very unlike Molly, but very like Lucy, who'd also lost her hat. They were completely absorbed in each other, leaning in to whisper to each other. As Audrey stood up to play with them, Percy simply smiled. In that moment, he was perfectly content. He had his girls.


	2. Chapter 2

**Girls**

It didn't last. As the girls got older, Molly and Lucy began to explore different interests. More aptly, Molly explored interests Lucy had no interest in. Molly began to enjoy sitting still and learning, while Lucy wanted to run around and play. Molly became even neater and more organized, while Lucy became even more carefree. Molly began to have less and less patience for Lucy's childishness.

By the time Molly was nine she seemed to hate everything about her sister. Or rather, she didn't have any patience left for Lucy. Molly was very much the same as Percy had been at that age. Percy and Audrey called her their driven daughter, but even her cousins had begun to see her as uptight. It wasn't that Molly didn't know how to have fun. Rather, like her parents, she found a good time in learning and stressed the importance of good behavior. She wasn't afraid to chastise her sister or inform an adult if someone was misbehaving, which made her just as popular with her cousins as Percy had been with his brothers. It didn't bother her. Molly thought most of her same-age and younger cousins were silly, and she would often rather sit around her older cousins as they spoke. She began to get very close to her cousin Victoire for that reason, always emulating what the older girl did.

Lucy was a different case. Percy and Audrey weren't quite sure where Lucy got her creativity from sometimes, although Audrey would mention that as a child she'd been preoccupied with photography. Lucy was clearly a dreamer. Even at seven she could often be found running about muddy and utterly content. Percy always found himself surprised by Lucy's imagination. She could spin fantastic stories, and had given up her coloring in favor of a small journal in which she wrote. She would spend hours hiding away only to come out with something crazy and out-of-the box. Most often she would come out with a story, which she'd then insist on reading aloud at dinner. More often than not she tried to involve Molly in her playing, which is where the problem began. Molly, it seemed, wanted nothing more than to grow up. Lucy, however, would stay a child forever if she could.

The older she got, the quieter Lucy got. She wrote stories in her journal, played outside, and even danced about, but she spoke less and less. She wasn't shy, but she seemed content to watch life go by. Molly had the opposite transformation. She grew more expressive the older she got, and more studious. She demanded her school books a year in advance, read them all, and memorized the text and movements to spells. Molly was outgoing and poised, presenting herself as a miniature adult with her full hair always styled neatly. Amongst her cousins Molly was not always popular, but she formed a special bond with her eldest cousin Victoire, who she idolized. Whenever she could, Molly would steal away with Victoire just to hear about her life at Hogwarts in preparation for the years to come.

Lucy became popular amongst her younger cousins for being the only one of the "older cousins" who would still play with them. There was a time when Percy thought Lucy would be the ultimate tomboy, as she was always running around outside with her male cousins. When she wasn't playing with them, Lucy would often climb into a small space with her journal to write her stories. She wrote about absolutely everything, and always based her characters on the people she knew. Her favorite stories to write were love stories about Aubrey and Mercy, and the tales of a doll named Dolly. Percy and Audrey listened to every single one of Lucy's stories. By the time she was ten Molly no longer listened to any.

Percy never quite knew how to stop Molly from being Molly, any more than he could stop Lucy from being Lucy. Audrey was the disciplinarian, always able to break up the arguments. Percy could scarcely do more than watch.

The first time Molly and Lucy got into a bad argument Molly was nine. Molly had gone shopping with Audrey in the muggle supermarket, and Lucy had decided that she was in a rare painting mood. For reasons Percy would never understand, Lucy had decided to paint Molly's walls. He had been in the study, and was oblivious to the problem until a fuming Molly came into his office.

"Lucy needs to be punished!" Molly said, indignant. That was Molly's way. She never yelled, only reasoned.

"I didn't do it! I didn't do it! I didn't do it! I didn't do it!" Lucy came down the stairs and ran into the room, all the while vehemently protesting.

"Lucy ruined my room! She painted all over it!" Molly explained, arms crossed. At nine, she acted like a miniature adult.

"Did you do it, Lucy?" Lucy shook her head, pouting at her dad.

"Lucy?" Percy tried to look stern, rather than uncomfortable.

"I made it pretty." Lucy said, meekly. Then she sent the nastiest glare Percy had ever seen to her sister. Molly rolled her eyes.

"She did an awful job. You should stick to your silly stories Lucy." Percy faintly wondered if he'd sounded so mean when he was Molly's age.

"Are you going to apologize Lucy?" Lucy blinked at her father as if she didn't understand.

"Lucy?" Lucy shook her head.

"She never says she's sorry!" Molly stamped her foot, a decidedly un-Molly move.

"I'm not." Lucy pouted.

"You're a terrible sister, you're always such a baby." Molly said, addressing Lucy.

"You're bossy! And mean! Nobody likes you except Victoire." Lucy said.

"I'm telling!" Molly said, turning her nose up. She'd clearly decided that her only justice would come from her mother. As Molly began to walk away Lucy ran out ahead of her.

"She's lying, she's lying, she's lying, she's lying" Lucy called after her.

It never seemed to get much better than that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hogwarts**

By the time Molly was a first year, she'd had enough of Lucy entirely. Long gone were their days of holding hands and playing together. They had evolved into two entirely different people. It didn't help that most of their cousins babied Lucy, while Molly's know-it-all nature could be suffocating.

The morning of Molly's departure Percy felt an almost unbearable amount of pride and excitement. He knew that Molly would succeed in school, she was a hard worker. She was just as excited as him, waking up early just to check over her bags and make sure she looked perfect. She had chosen to wear her school clothes rather than change on the train, which was exactly what Percy had done on his first day.

The family had oatmeal and fruit, Molly's favorite breakfast, before packing into Audrey's car. She had insisted on driving them to King's Cross rather than using wizard transportation. Along the way she reminded Molly to keep up with her maths, and other muggle subjects that Audrey insisted the girls complete. She wanted the girls to be well-rounded, and Percy agreed. Still, he couldn't wait for Molly to come home for Christmas with everything she'd learned.

By the time they arrived at the platform, Molly was more than ready to get on the train and be gone. Her mother had forced her hair into two neat braids, and she had grasped her mother's hand confidently and practically ran through the brick wall to the platform. She stood eagerly staring at the train as Percy and Lucy walked up. At the sight of her sister Molly once again let out a small sigh. The younger girl's hair was loose, and even crazier than normal. As usual she was pouting, looking even more adorably miserable because of her thick lips and wide eyes.

"I want to go with Molly" Lucy whined, tugging on her dad's hand. Percy leaned down to calm her, but before he could Molly came to stand in front of her sister.

At age ten Lucy was still very childish looking, small and slim and innocent. She did not like to do anything to her hair and as a result it just seemed to grow thicker and thicker. Lucy knew that she was small and adorable and liked to use it to her advantage. She was in no hurry to look any older. By contrast Moly did her best to present herself as the perfect little lady. She was flat as a pancake, but still insisted on wearing the training brassieres her mother had bought her, claiming they made her feel more grown up. She would often beg her older cousins, especially Victoire, to put a little make-up on her just so she could how she'd look when she was "grown up."

Molly was a good four inches taller than her sister still, allowing her to look down at her.

"Don't be such a baby" Molly sighed, frowning at Lucy.

"I'm not being a baby. I want to go!" Lucy stomped her foot, and Molly frowned in response.

"This is my day Lucy, wait your turn." It was a dismissal. Molly turned, nearly dragging her mother behind her. And so, just like that, Molly boarded her train.

While Molly was busy making friends, her outgoing spirit attracting her fellow Gryffindor's to her in spite of her annoyed cousins, Lucy was learning to fend for herself. Without Molly around to boss her about she had to get up by herself, get ready by herself, and nag herself to do the lessons Molly would normally have made her do. She quite liked the freedom.

By the time Molly came back for Christmas, Percy had witnessed somewhat of a transformation in Lucy. She was much more responsible without Molly to tell her what to do, and she actually seemed to enjoy doing some of the things she had once shunned because of Molly. She was also growing, and starting to look like less of a child. She still wrote however, and still felt the need to base all of her characters off of family members.

Things were unusually calm at Christmas. Perhaps because of the separation, or simply because they were surrounded by family, Molly and Lucy got along splendidly. They spent the entire vacation together in one room at the burrow, and actually seemed to get along. To the chagrin of her boy cousins Lucy seemed to be done with running around, and instead she sat with her other female cousins as they spoke about Hogwarts, listening in eagerly.

On Christmas day they seemed most excited to receive their presents from each other, and Audrey even allowed them to test some make-up out on each other, resulting in hours of the girls coming out to debut their new "looks" and giggling uncontrollably. When it was time for Molly to go back, the two actually hugged goodbye and promised to write each other. Percy thought the worst was over.

That summer, Molly came back with stories of new friends, cool magic, and all the general excitement of her first year. Like her dad she hadn't taken a liking to Quidditch, but Victoire made sure she was invited to every party. The summer passed in much the same way, leading Percy to believe that things had finally changed. Then, it was Lucy's turn to discover the wonder that was Hogwarts.

Molly had helped Lucy pack for weeks, all while telling her of the fantastic people that she would meet. She told her about all of the professors, and how to do well on each of their exams. She told Lucy about the subjects that she would like and dislike, and the older students that were friendly and those to stay away from. On the first morning, the two girls looked as alike as they ever had, both dressed in their neatly pressed Hogwarts uniforms, ready to go.

That morning both Percy and Audrey felt, mixed in with their excitement, the tiniest bit of sadness. They were happy for Lucy, but it felt strange to think of their babies being away at school without them. This time at the platform, there was no fighting. Molly had convinced Lucy to braid her hair, so the two looked almost the same. They got on the train together, and waved at their parents through the window of a compartment filled with Molly's friends.

Without the girls, the house was quieter. Percy and Audrey entertained the idea of having other children, but they both dismissed it. Their two girls were more than enough. Both girls wrote weekly. In the first of the letters, Percy was pleased to hear from birth girls about Lucy being sorted into Gryffindor. Beyond that they sent their letters separately.

Molly's letters were factual as always, detailing how she thought she was doing in school and some notes about other goings on. Neither Molly nor Lucy was fond of playing Quidditch, but Molly went to every game and kept her parents informed on the scores. She also wrote about how she thought Lucy was doing in school and in making friends.

Lucy's letters were often a surprise. Sometimes she would write about schoolwork, but that was very seldom. Most of the time she would write about her new friends and the new things she'd seen. She would write stories about something she learned in History of Magic, or about one of her new friends. She seldom wrote about Molly except to say that Molly was doing brilliantly as usual.

From their letters Percy gathered that the girls were not spending much time together, which Audrey assured him was normal. They were, after all, their own separate people. At Christmastime they were as close as ever, speaking about the few people they both knew and sharing all of the Hogwarts gossip eagerly.

As time passed, Molly's letters began to have entire sections dedicated to Lucy's performance. She was worried that Lucy wasn't taking her classes as seriously as she should. Both Molly and Lucy still completed little assignments that Audrey would send them from time to time with muggle work. Molly's were always prompt and correct, but Lucy seemed much more passionate about it. Audrey reasoned that Lucy didn't study the same way that Molly did, and thus wouldn't spend a lot of time doing schoolwork around her sister.

The truth was revealed when both girls came home for their summer vacation, and their marks were sent home. As usual, Molly outdid herself. Her scores were fantastic, earning her praise. To Percy and Audrey's surprise, Lucy's marks were barely average. Aside from History of Magic, in which she had unusually high marks, she seemed to be neither doing well nor doing poorly. They scolded her for not trying hard enough, but Lucy was not at all bothered.

"I'm doing alright." She said, looking uncomfortable.

"I can help you if you want Lucy." Molly offered. Molly spent the entire summer offering. While Lucy did just fine in her muggle schoolwork, she seemed to have no interest in learning anything about magic from Molly.

"Molly, I'm doing alright. It's not like I can't do magic." Was always Lucy's response. As long as she got along in her classes, it seemed, Lucy was content to stay where she was. It was an attitude entirely foreign to Molly, Audrey, or Percy. They tried to encourage her to care more, but to no avail.

Their next time back, Lucy opted to change on the train. Although the two girls were amicable and got on the train together, they waved goodbye from two different compartments.

By the time Molly was a fifth year and Lucy a fourth, the two girls seemed to run in entirely different circles. Molly was almost outperforming her father academically, and had a group of friends from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw that she would study with. She spoke a lot about academic opportunities and what she wanted to do once she left Hogwarts, and about the interesting things she was learning. She spoke about conquering her OWL exams, and how confident she felt. At the end, she would add a bit about how she thought Lucy was doing "all things considered."

Lucy seemed content exactly where she was. She excelled in History of Magic and, oddly enough, Divination, but seemed content to merely pass the rest of her classes. No amount of prodding would change her mind. Her friends, a mix of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, were all a diverse bunch. She would share her writings with them, and they would share other talents with her. In that way she learned how to take pictures from a moving broom, how to snorkel, and how to catch small magical creatures in the forbidden forest. Every letter from Lucy was an adventure, and it was sometimes hard to tell what was a story and what was true. She almost never spoke of classes, and when asked about them she'd say they were "going along alright." She always wrote about Molly somewhere in the letter, and she always made sure to let her parents know that the particular section of the letter was going to be "a bit boring" because there was "nothing much new in Molly's life."

There were also little things that separated the sisters. Molly was fuller figured than Lucy, always warm and inviting. In the middle of her fifth year she began dating a Ravenclaw named Anthony Leatherman, and then half of her letters were about how smart and driven he was. At Easter she brought him home to visit her parents and even Percy was impressed. The boy was certainly charming, but he was also ambitious. He seemed to care about Molly fairly deeply, which is what impressed Audrey.

Lucy was thinner than Molly, even when she finally grew taller. Her hair was the biggest part of her, although she began using Sleakeazy potion on it to keep it out of her way. She would often send her parents pictures of her in her letters, and several of them featured many different boys. She never officially told her father anything, but she'd started sending letters just for her mother in third year. Audrey would never tell, but starting fourth year Lucy went through her fair share of boys. She wasn't a slag, although Molly sometimes teased her that she was, but Lucy didn't feel anything very deeply for the boys she dated. She would date them for a month or two, kiss them, take pictures with them, and then send them on their way when she got bored. She wasn't the type of girl to fancy herself in love with them, but she liked having someone care about her.

By the time the girls came home that year, it was clear to Percy that things weren't going to change. It wasn't that they disliked each other. They seemed to live in their own spate worlds. As time passed, they simply drifted apart.


	4. Chapter 4

**Graduation**

As the girls grew older, they never got much closer. Although Molly and Lucy loved each other, the truth was that they were very different people. The girls' relationship became a subtle agreement. They were friendly to each other, and they kept their lives separate.

Then, suddenly, it was Molly's graduation. Neither of the girls knew how it had happened, but Molly was ready to enter the real world. Lucy found herself on the first day of her holiday standing next to Molly as people Lucy barely knew hugged Molly and congratulated her. Lucy found she didn't know how to feel about it.

Molly was brimming with excitement. She had accomplished everything she had set out to accomplish at school, and then some. She felt like royalty as she walked up to sit with her class. The event always took place on the Hogwarts grounds, and it was finally Molly's turn to participate. The people in her class stood next to each other in front of all of their parents and families, as the headmaster and all of their professors said kind words about them and rained sparks over their heads.

While Molly stood with her class, Lucy took the seat next to her parents. She had wanted to invite a friend to come with her, but none of Lucy's friends knew Molly well. Instead she watched with her parents as Molly graduated. Molly had been raving for over a month about how she was the one asked to give a speech for all of the graduating Gryffindors. As she watched Molly speak, Lucy was filled with pride. It was a fantastic speech, nowhere near as boring as the Hufflepuff one was. Every person in the audience hung onto Molly's words. Molly was a beautiful speaker, Lucy realized.

The ceremony ended with everyone surrendering their school robes, one by one, to the headmaster. In place they received ceremonial school robes, enchanted to always fit and never wear down. In place of their house emblem, these robes had the Hogwarts emblem stitched on them. Then, the graduates shot their own sparks into the air, in the colors of their house, as a final sign of house pride.

As soon as the ceremony had ended, Molly came down to her family. One by one Percy and Audrey grasped their daughter in their arms. Audrey had silent tears of joy running down her face, while Percy's smile seemed to literally lighten the sky. Molly let go of her dad, and then the two sisters looked at each other.

"Lucy, love, aren't you going to congratulate your sister?" Audrey asked, smiling through her tears.

Lucy made eye contact with her Molly. Without warning she threw her arms around her sister, careful not to get her earrings or anything else stuck in Molly's hair.

"Congrats Molly, I'm so proud of you." she said, and then suddenly Molly was hugging her back. The girls both realized what an absurdly long time it had been since they'd last hugged. They stayed like that for a while. When they pulled away they faced Molly's boyfriend, Anthony. The proud Ravenclaw smiled politely at Lucy, before putting an arm around Molly's waist.

Molly's smile grew larger instantly. After two and a half years together Anthony felt like her other half. She slipped her arm back around him, leaning in to his touch as her parents began to congratulate him on his successes too. His speech for Ravenclaw, while very different from Molly's, had been beautiful. Unsure of what to do, Lucy stood by as more people began to congratulate her sister.

Feeling awkward, she made to walk away, but something was stopping her. She looked down, to find Molly's free hand tightly clasped around her own. Molly felt Lucy tug to pull away but when she turned, she met her sister's eyes. The two stayed side by side for the rest of the day.

Right before Lucy was to go back for her seventh year, Molly moved out for good. It wasn't really a surprise to anyone except Lucy, who'd spent most of the summer bouncing between her friends' homes. Sometime in her fifth year Lucy decided she wanted to be an artist, and some of her friends lived in such beautiful places. She came back to find almost all of her sister's things packed up. One day, she woke up with a sister, and by the time she went to sleep Molly was gone. For the first time in ages the house was silent.

Molly moved into a flat she and Anthony had paid for. Both were geared up to start jobs in The Department of Magical Law Enforcement, so it was just practical for the two to move in together, along with their mutual friends Ralph and Tabitha. They were another couple, but the two women shared one room and the two men shared the other. Nobody in their quartet wanted to admit that the room arrangement was probably temporary.

When Lucy came home for Christmas, she was met with another surprise. The night before Christmas they were all invited to dine at the Leathermann home where Molly's boyfriend Anthony became Molly's fiancée Anthony. Molly had never felt so loved by any one person. Anthony was everything she'd pictured for herself: handsome, attentive, intelligent, hard-working, caring, and career oriented. He was already rising through the ranks in the Wizengamot.

Lucy congratulated Molly a lot over Christmas break, about her engagement and about her promotion in the Improper Use of Magic office. She spent more nights staying over in Molly's flat that Christmas than she did at home. While her friends stressed over NEWT exams, Lucy pressured the quartet until the two couples finally agreed to switch to having their own rooms. Out of respect for Lucy's graduation, and in order to be sure that they were ready, Molly and Anthony agreed not to get married until the following November. While they slowly began to plan their wedding, Lucy went back to school and everything stayed the same.

When it was finally time for Lucy to graduate, Audrey nearly had a nervous breakdown. Percy knew exactly how she felt. Although Lucy had no concrete plans to move out, she was still officially an adult. They met up with Molly and Anthony in the morning, and the four flooed together to arrive at Hogwarts.

Surrounded by a large group of friends, Lucy graduated. Unlike Molly, she didn't feel a large sense of accomplishment during the day. She loved the speech that Adam Hammond gave for Gryffindor, just as she loved the speeches the speakers from other houses gave. She was touched and surprised when Professor Binns commended her for her work in History of Magic by name, the first time the old ghost had gotten her name right. More than anything, Lucy longed for one more year. When she shot her red sparks up into the air, Lucy realized she was crying.

Molly had to fight her way through a throng of people to get to Lucy. Lucy made people want to protect her, still, and her friends were very protective. When she finally threw her arms around her sister, Molly couldn't be more proud. There had been times when she thought Lucy was not going to graduate. Now that it had finally happened, Molly almost couldn't contain herself. Many of the people in Lucy's year stopped by to congratulate her. As Molly noted, most of them were boys. However when everything was said and done, it was Molly that Lucy wanted to keep close on her special night.

It took Lucy almost a year after graduation to move into a small flat in Diagon Alley. Unlike Molly, Lucy had neither the grades nor the desire to work for the ministry. Instead, she had gotten a job at Flourish and Blott's and used her free time to write her first novel. She would tell anyone who would listen that she couldn't wait to finally finish a full-length story and get it published. In the meantime, Molly and Anthony got married and moved into their own two-bedroom apartment. Molly offered to help Lucy find her own place, but Lucy said she'd know it when she saw it. She did.

Two years after Lucy's graduation, Lucy received a letter from Molly announcing Molly's first pregnancy. The remaining seven months were the most the two girls owled. Lucy wanted to know everything, and every so often would drop by to check on Molly and see the baby bump. When Molly's daughter was born, Susanna, Lucy was the first other family member to hold her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Unexpected**

After Susanna's birth the girls kept up a brief correspondence, and slowly lost touch again. Nearly six years after Lucy's graduation, they lived almost entirely separate lives. The only times they interacted were holidays and birthdays when they visited their parents. Both girls frequented their parents' home and spoke to their parents quite a bit.

Molly still wrote one long letter to both parents about every week or two. She told them what was going on at work, and how Susanna was doing. When she gave birth to her son, Robert, she told them all about him too. She told her parents about each child's developing personality, and all about their lives. She told them about Anthony's success at work, and about everything else that she thought they ought to know.

Lucy wrote frequently. She would send excerpts of her novel, which were quite good, and ideas for other novels. She would talk about the new exciting people she was meeting, and the opportunities her job afforded her to interact with even more. She would talk about the men she met, but none of them seemed to last for more than a few months. She would write about anything and everything that came to her mind. However, both Percy and Audrey felt that Lucy shied away from speaking about hard times in her letters. She never spoke of breaking up with any of the men she dated, nor of troubles with the rent or anything. However there had been more than one time where Lucy would ask to "come home for a few days" before changing her mind in her next letter.

Percy kept every one of his girls' letters in a shoebox. Any pictures that Molly sent were kept as well, despite the fact that he saw his grandchildren at least once a month. Susanna had Anthony's dark hair but Molly's pretty smile. Robert's hair was blonde, but Percy swore it got redder each day. He also treasured Lucy's pictures of herself, as she sent them very infrequently. She also dropped by to visit very irregularly. There would be periods where she'd come almost every day, and then periods where she'd be away for months. As far as Percy and Audrey knew, the girls sent each other courtesy letters every few months. It didn't bother them, so long as the girls got along well enough at Christmas and Easter.

One morning, as usual, Molly was in the kitchen taking care of three year old Susanna and ten-month old Robert. She was working from home to take care of them, a task she was surprised to find she loved. Her friends laughed at her shock, all claiming she was very naturally maternal. She supposed she took after her father's mother in that sense. Susanna was eager to help her mother take care of Robert the best way she knew how. Molly knew that if things got hectic she could ask Anthony to skive off work, but she wasn't up to it. She knew she could handle it.

There was a brisk knock on the door, leaving Molly confused. She wondered who'd be dropping by so early. Levitating the bottle she'd been warming, Molly told Susanna to stay put and headed towards the door. To her surprise it was Lucy, holding some sort of parcel. Although Lucy had dropped by unannounced before, it didn't happen very often. Her normally vibrant sister seemed oddly haggard and exhausted. Molly was quick to open the door.

It was only after she opened the door that she noticed Lucy's tears. Her sister seemed determined to ignore the tears, but Molly couldn't.

"Lucy, are you alright?" That did it. Lucy let the tears fall freely as she shook her head, clutching the parcel delicately to her chest. When Molly moved to take the package Lucy pulled back, shaking her head.

"I know you're probably busy Molly but, but, I need help." Molly nodded her head towards the stairs and Lucy began to walk up as Molly returned to the kitchen.

"Mummy, who was it?" Susanna asked, peering around her mother to the door.

"Oh it was just Auntie Lucy. Sweetheart, will you please paint your aunt a picture? Mummy and Auntie Lucy are not to be disturbed, but I think she'll appreciate your picture. I think it may cheer her up." Ever the obedient child Susanna raced to the den to do as she was asked. Molly picked up Robert and handed him his bottle before carrying him up the stairs. As she guessed, Lucy had settled herself in to Molly and Anthony's bedroom.

Molly opened the door to see Lucy still crying and still clutching the package. As she came in and shut the door Molly settled Robert into a chair. She then moved to remove the package from Lucy's grasp, but it emitted a small moan. Molly backed up in horror, and Lucy glanced up at her with wide eyes. As the package made the noise again Lucy finally moved the fabric covering its face. Her face. Molly realized, with a dull sort of horror, the package was not a package at all. It was a baby.

"Lucy?" Molly breathed. She couldn't believe that she hadn't known. She'd just seen Lucy six months ago and while she hadn't looked her best, she certainly hadn't looked pregnant.

"She, I just got out of Mungo's. They closed my apartment because I'm late again. I haven't been at work. I don't have any money. Molly I have nowhere to go." Lucy clutched her baby closer to her again. She hadn't meant to show up at Molly's, but Molly lived a lot closer to Mungo's. Lucy was down to her last 3 galleons, and she needed everything she had to try and form a plan.

"Lucy, why do you, what do you mean you just got out of Mungo's, did you just give birth?"

"I didn't even know I was pregnant until I was five months in. What kind of mother doesn't even notice her own baby? They looked at me like I was crazy when I came in this morning by myself, asked if they should floo mum. Can you imagine? Hello mum, sorry I've kept this out of my letters, didn't want to worry you, meet your new granddaughter. So I said no, but if you don't have somewhere stable they take the baby away so I came here. You can't floo or apparate with a baby. I took the Knight Bus."

"What, who, Lucy, where's her father? Why were you by yourself?" Molly would always regret asking that question. Any sort of control that Lucy had shattered. She gave up on reigning in her tears and began sobbing in earnest, pulling the baby in closer and closer to her.

"He doesn't know. I tried to keep it a secret at first because I was living with him and I didn't want him to throw me out. Then I just left. I stayed with my friend Lacey and kept it from her too. But I told her I'd leave, so now I have nowhere to go. I haven't gone to work in two months and I've used almost every knut trying to keep a room at the Cauldron so that Bradley can't find me and" Lucy broke off into sobs again. She lay back on the bed, on her side so that her baby was also lying down.

"She doesn't even have clothes, baby things cost too much. Bradley still has all of my belongings."

"Her da doesn't know? Lucy, you have to tell him. He has a daughter; don't you think he'll want to know?"

"Bradley was the best thing that ever came into my life Molly. You won't understand. You're stable. Bradley offered me a place to stay one day at work when I was complaining about paying too much rent. He helped me move all my things in to his extra room and didn't even say anything if I missed a month paying him for food and the bills. He has a real job, Molly. He didn't even want to sleep with me. He said it would make things complicated. I said I had the potion, I was so sure. Now I've mucked it all up as usual. What do you think he's going to say? I haven't spoken to him in four months, not since I told him I was leaving. He's going to take one look at me and take Clara away from me and then I won't have a daughter or him and I'll be all alone."

"You won't really be alone Lucy, even if that happens. You have me, and mum, and dad, and Anthony."

"I'm always alone Molly. Nobody ever sticks around me for too long. I'm a mess. My novel isn't going anywhere productive. I doubt I even have a job still. I lost the one man who actually seemed to want to stick things out with me, and I'm going to kill my daughter because I can't do anything right."

For the first time in a long time, Molly didn't know what to say. Whenever she spoke to Lucy she encouraged her to be more responsible, and it never seemed to register. She didn't understand how Lucy had even gotten into the situation she was in. More importantly, Molly didn't understand how so much could have been happening in Lucy's life while Molly remained entirely oblivious.

"You're not alone Lucy. You can stay here. For as long as you'd like." Molly understood that it was not the best idea. Anthony and Molly had been planning on moving out of their flat and into a house soon, one with four bedrooms so that they could have a guest room. As it was, Lucy would have to sleep on a couch. She had only one crib; the only thing she had for Clara to sleep in was a cradle that sat low to the ground. Still, she couldn't turn her sister away.

"Have you learnt to nurse her yet?" Molly asked, trying to keep her tone soft and soothing. Still carrying Robert she moved to sit next Lucy on the bed, running a comforting hand along Lucy's back.

"They showed me before I left." Lucy mumbled.

"Good, that means you won't need to buy her food for a while. As for yourself, you're welcome to anything in our fridge. In fact, let me put Clara and Robert down for a nap so that I can get you all set up in the living room. You go ahead and eat, delivery is not easy." Molly didn't wait for the yes. She gently pried Clara out of Lucy's grip and cradled the baby to her chest. Clara, like Lucy, was tiny. It was easy for her to carry Clara to Robert's crib and lay her down. She made sure to lay Robert down on the other side, to ensure that he wouldn't accidently roll over Clara. Then, while Lucy ate, Molly dragged the cradle out of storage and fixed it up next to the couch, before fixing the couch.

In the first two weeks, Lucy only had time for Clara. She spent all of her time with Clara every hour of every day, barely remembering to eat and drink. Slowly, she opened up to Molly. Anthony, to his credit, didn't seem to mind. He made her feel included rather than a burden. Susanna liked having a new baby to play with, and even Robert seemed to enjoy smiling, clapping, and gurgling at his even smaller cousin.

A month and a half in, Molly convinced Lucy to look for a new job. Two months in Lucy began working for a wizard historian. The older woman didn't mind Lucy bringing Clara to work with her, so the two would leave in the morning and get home at night. Four months in, Lucy had saved enough to begin looking for her own place, which is why it was a surprise when Lucy came home midday one day with Clara, looking terrified.

"I saw him." Lucy said, once she'd finally calmed down. "Bradley." Molly still knew almost nothing about Clara's father. However, it seemed he had been looking for Lucy. Molly knew it was only a matter of time before he found Lucy, and she was right. One day a man showed up on her doorstep.

"Molly Weasley? I'm looking for Lucy. I know she's staying here. Please, I. I just want to make sure she's okay." So Molly let him in. She watched him play with Susanna with a large smile on his face. She watched him feed Robert so that she could continue working on a project. When Lucy came home, she took Susanna and Robert to visit Anthony's parents to give the two adults time.

Lucy was blindsided. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to hide Clara. She didn't know what to say.

"Lucy?" She knew he wanted an explanation. She wanted to run away. Instead, she decided to handle it how she thought Molly might handle it.

"This is Clara. She's you're daughter. Bradley I'm so sorry. I really wasn't trying to ruin your life. You don't have to do anything, I don't need anything from her. Just please, please don't take her away. I have a real job now, and I'm going to get my own place soon. But you can't take her away from me." Bradley was quiet for a long time. Long enough for Clara to start fussing and whining. Long enough for Lucy to get even more nervous.

"Can I see her?" He asked finally. Lucy nodded and hesitantly handed him Clara.

"She's beautiful." He said, and for the first time Lucy hoped things might be okay.

"What are you thinking?" Lucy asked, watching him rock Clara back and forth. Lucy had to believe that Clara knew her father was holding her. She snuggled into his touch and was still for once.

"Move back in? I have all of your stuff, we can go on how we were before Lucy, but this doesn't make sense. I want to know my daughter and I want to know you. I thought things were working Lucy? Just, what did I do? And how can I fix it?" Lucy kissed him then.

She kissed him because she wanted to live with him, and wanted to raise her daughter with him, and because she didn't have an answer for him. He hadn't done anything wrong. But he also seemed to be the first person who had seen how badly she could mess up and still wanted to stay with her.

By the time Molly and her children got back, Lucy's things were packed. By the time Anthony got home, Lucy was gone as quickly as she came.


	6. Chapter 6

**Apologies**

Molly realized she hadn't seen Lucy in a long time when the letter came by owl post. There she was, minding her own business getting Susanna ready for class, when next thing she knew an unfamiliar owl was in her kitchen.

At seven, Susanna was the spitting image of her mother with her blue grey eyes. The only difference was her dark hair. She barely remembered the time when Auntie Lucy and baby Clara had lived with them. So when her mom opened the letter and fainted, Susanna screamed. Four year old Robert woke up at the sound, ran down the stairs, and promptly burst into tears at the sight of his mother on the ground. This was the situation that Molly opened her eyes to. Sweeping Robert into her arms she told Susanna, in the calmest voice she could muster, to floo Anthony.

While her daughter searched for the floo pot, Molly put Robert in to bath, and then returned to the letter.

Bradley Wilson and Lucy Weasley

Formally request your presence on November 15th 2030 to celebrate the union of our families.

There was more to it, but she couldn't get past those lines. Last Molly had heard, Bradley and Lucy had agreed to be strictly platonic about raising Clara. Clearly, it hadn't stayed that way.

Making matters much worse, November 15th was barely a month away and Molly had hardly any time to plan. Susanna and Robert would need appropriate clothes, as would she and Anthony. Anthony would need to take the night off of work. Then, Molly wondered who had been helping Lucy plan the wedding. She knew from the occasional times she ran into Lucy that her sister was planning on selling her first two novels soon, but other than that she wasn't sure who Lucy knew.

Lucy hadn't been in Molly's wedding, although she had made a very sweet toast. She'd said it would be strange, and Molly agreed. Still, Molly couldn't help but be sad that she hadn't been able to help at all.

By the time a harried Anthony flooed home from work, Molly was in full planning mode. She had set Robert down for his nap, busied Susanna with some math work, called their respective schools to report their absences, and was already going through her closet to decide what to wear. She had decided that her family was choosing between her green dress and a plum gown that her mother had surprised her with when Anthony came rushing into their bedroom.

"Molly, I am so sorry. I came as quickly as I could. Susie said you're sick. What happened?" Too anxious to stop moving, Molly sent the invitation over with a wave of her wand and went back to her choosing.

"Anthony do you have a purple tie?' The plum gown went very nicely with her hair, and she knew her mother would love to see her in it.

"Lucy is getting married? I never thought that day would come." Molly chose to ignore that comment and decided to look through her husbands' ties herself.

"Molly, are you upset?"

"Well of course not. I'm thrilled. This is great, especially for Clara. I hope she'll be the flower girl. Now I have to go shopping for a dress for Susie, and I'm sure she'll be thrilled, and if we get Rob a tie he'll take it off but I'm not sure it's appropriate to wear a bowtie to a wedding."

"Molly, take a second." Molly huffed and turned to tell Anthony that she was fine. Instead he captured her in a kiss.

"Molly, have you even owled Lucy and Bradley to congratulate them?" If Anthony was trying to calm Molly down, this had the opposite effect.

"No! We need to write them a letter. And we need to get them the perfect gift, but I don't know what you get two people who are already living together and have a child who's already three years old. What if Lucy is pregnant again and that's why they're getting married?"

"Molly –" Anthony tried to cut in but before he could speak Molly was already out the door. He found her at her desk, furiously scribbling away. He knew better to disturb her while writing, so he waited. Susanna finished her math and gave it to him to check, he corrected her, and then sent her off to play. Robert woke up from his nap and Anthony fed him. Then, finally, Molly finished writing.

"That should do it." Was all she would tell Anthony about the letter, which she mailed off right away. It was still quite some time before Anthony could get Molly to sit down and explain what had happened.

Less than a month later, Lucy was waiting to walk down the aisle. Lucy and Bradley had decided to have a very small, very intimate wedding. If she was being honest with herself, Lucy was a bit terrified to get married. She had a stable job, paid half the bills, and took care of Clara, but she still couldn't help feeling like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop with Bradley. When he'd proposed, she'd told him that he was insane for wanting to marry her.

"Mummy, when do I go?" Clara was Lucy's rock. Lucy swore that Clara inherited all of her father's brains and none of Lucy's childishness because although Clara was adventurous she also loved to learn. When they'd announced to Clara that they were getting married she'd been so excited. She was even more excited to get a pretty dress and shoes and throw flowers.

"Mummy?" Lucy hadn't realized she'd forgotten to answer.

"Remember darling. They have to let daddy get comfy up there. Then they're going to start playing the music and open the door and you can fly out on your little broom, just like you wanted. Grip with your knees like daddy showed you and only use one hand to throw the flowers." Lucy wasn't sure it was the best decision to let Clara throw flowers from a toy broom but neither she nor Bradley could think of a good enough reason why not.

Sure enough, minutes later Clara was floating down the aisle, throwing flowers left and right. Before they walked out Lacey and Gemmy, Lucy's bridesmaids, hugged her and told her she looked beautiful. Then, Lucy turned to her dad.

"Are you ready for this?" She joked. Percy wasn't sure that he was. Giving Molly away had been difficult for Percy, but this was harder than he'd expected. Lucy was his baby. The thought of her getting married was strange. Audrey had told him that he was ridiculous, but he couldn't shake it. Still, seeing the smile on her face made him beam.

"Let's go darling." So, they went. Percy walked Lucy down the aisle. He watched as she said her vows to Bradley and as Bradley said them back. He watched the ceremonial shooting of sparks that indicated the completion of the ritual. He watched as they scooped up Clara for every single one of their wedding pictures.

After the cake, Molly made a toast to her sister that had Percy and Audrey in tears. When Anthony teased him about it he told his son-in-law to just wait until Susanna got married. He took pictures with Lucy and Bradley, holding Clara and making silly faces with her.

His favorite picture though, was the one they all took together. He and Audrey stood in the middle, with Bradley's parents on one side and Anthony's parents on the other. Molly and Anthony stood with Susanna and Robert, as well as Anthony's elder sister Reina and her family. Lucy and Bradley stood with Clara, as Bradley was an only child. When they got that picture in the mail, Percy and Audrey had immediately put it in a frame and hung it. It was one of the happiest days of Percy's life.

Two years later, Audrey got sick. It was a subtle sickness. At first she would just get tired easily. Then, she began to feel pain in the back of her head. Despite Percy's insistence that Audrey go to St. Mungo's, she went to a muggle doctor. The initial screening came back negative, so everyone assumed nothing was wrong. They said that the stress of getting old must be getting to her.

Two months later she went in again and tested positive for brain cancer. Percy put his foot down about Mungo's, but the Healers told him that things didn't look good. They could try to give Audrey potions, but there was a chance that her non-magical body would reject them. They could try to operate on her brain, but muggle doctors had more practice with it than the mediziwards did. So, they went back to the hospital. They tried to remove the tumor, but after two surgeries they declared the rest of it inoperable.

For the next two months, Molly and Lucy had all but moved in with their mother and father. Lucy came every morning and stayed later and later each day, until she eventually just brought some clothes back to their old bedroom. Molly wouldn't stay the night, but she arrived earlier and earlier every morning until Lucy wondered if she was ever actually leaving Audrey's side at all. Percy certainly didn't. He took time off work to get Audrey everything and anything that she wanted.

When she said she wanted him to stop worrying he forced himself to smile more. He cracked jokes with Audrey to make her laugh, and constantly showed her pictures of everyone in their families. He smiled so much the girls almost convinced themselves that he wasn't hurting. Everything that the three of them had was put into making Audrey more and more comfortable. When the doctor came by and told her that she probably only had a few days left, Audrey told everyone not to worry. She asked people to visit her, and they did. Her mother was dead but her father came and visited, and like Percy he pretended not to be sad. He joked about living to see his great-grandchildren and warned Molly and Lucy to watch out else he outlived them too. Molly and Arthur Weasley came by and Molly senior took over the running of the house so that Percy could spend even more time at Audrey's bedside. All of Percy's brothers dropped by at least once to say their goodbyes to Audrey, although none of them put it that way.

Audrey died surrounded by family, for which Percy was grateful. Percy held her hand right until the end. Molly and Lucy hugged each other and refused to cry until the spell that confirmed that she was dead. Then, they all sobbed. Nobody as much as Percy.

Percy had never been so distraught. Audrey was the love of his life. At 62 he felt that Audrey had lived just over half of a life. She hadn't even lived to see her grandchildren go to Hogwarts.

Molly and Lucy would always say that their dad never fully recovered from Audrey's death. He planned her funeral meticulously, and it was exactly as beautiful and as grand as Percy wanted it to be. He went back to work, and moved on with his life. A year later he told both girls to stop checking in on him so much, that he was fine. But he didn't mean it.

The only comfort Percy had after his wife's death was when his daughters visited, bringing their children's laughter and smiles back into his home. When they were gone, he missed them terribly.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Although this story wasn't as popular as some of my other fics, it was such a pleasure to write. It's been so long since I've finished it, and I finally just decided to upload it and be done. I hope you enjoy this ending. If you want to know what my next project might be, check out my writing blog!**

**Thanks, Chicagochi**

* * *

**Percy's Girls**

Time passed. Molly and Lucy got older, and so did their children. Lucy kept a stable job, eventually taking over part of the work. She loved it. Her novels both got picked up, and while neither was a huge success both drew in enough income for her to still write on the side. When Robert left for Hogwarts, Molly returned to her desk in the Ministry and got promotion after promotion. Once a month visits with Percy became four times a year visits, including Christmas and Easter visits. However neither girl hesitated to owl her father whenever they had news they wanted to share, and just to check up on him.

Percy Weasley didn't die painfully. He didn't die slowly, he didn't die brutally, and he didn't die for any particular reason. Many blamed old age, he had seen quite a few winters and wasn't exactly in prime condition. Others blamed heartache, saying that the loss of his wife must have gotten to be too much. Percy Weasley's death was not gruesome, scarring, or very notable. Percy died alone.

Molly got the news first. By then Susanna was a seventh year, and had not yet stopped teasing her brother Robert, the fourth year. As she got older Susanna's hair had gotten darker and darker, almost as black as her father's. Percy was right about Robert, his blonde hair had slowly but surely faded to red, but he had the same handsome face structure as his father.

Lucy heard the news directly from Molly, the first time she'd spoken directly to her sister since she'd dropped Clara off at the platform for her third year. Clara looked a lot like her father with her light brown hair and soft features. Although a much better student, she was just as free spirited as Lucy.

The funeral for Percy Weasley was held on a bright, sunny day. He was to be buried right next to Audrey, just as both girls knew he'd have wanted it. The service was planned to perfection by Molly, who used it as a distraction from her grief. Predictably Lucy was a wreck, taking time off work to grieve. She was more than content to leave the details to Molly. She agreed to speak only because Molly insisted.

When they first began the service, Lucy was already in tears, but Molly held strong. The children had been excused from school for the service, so Clara and Bradley were in charge of keeping Lucy's emotions under control. Meanwhile, Molly was comforting a heartbroken Susanna while trying to keep it together. It wasn't until the viewing that she started to fall apart.

"Where's Lucy?" Molly had thought she could handle it. She thought she would be strong. But she saw her father's body, and her heart broke. There she was, a grown woman, suddenly bawling like a baby.

"Molly." Molly loved her husband. She knew Anthony was trying to calm her down. But he needed to let go of her. She needed her sister.

"Where is my baby sister?" she managed to choke out. She knew when Lucy hugged her before she saw her. Lucy was just slightly taller than Molly, just enough for Molly to tuck her face into Lucy's neck. Lucy held her sister, knowing exactly what Molly needed. As Molly sobbed, Lucy's own tears fell silently down her face.

When she'd heard Molly cry out, she'd immediately run over, leaving her husband to take care of Clara. Clara had loved her grandfather very much, and Lucy had been helping her grieve. But Molly needed her most. Lucy knew it because she needed Molly just as much. So, through the rest of the service the two girls sat by themselves, clinging to each other.

It was an unspoken agreement that the two of them would stay to settle the house. Neither of the girls wanted to sell the house, but they didn't know what they wanted to do with it either. In the wake of the death of their last parent, the girls walked around their childhood home not doing much. They looked through old pictures taken by their mother, papers that they'd never realized their father had kept. Molly and Lucy found old stories and drawings and books and toys, things they'd meant to give their children but had forgotten.

One day they made their way out to the fields. They were armed with pictures of their childhood, of them playing in the fields. Molly had found their old sunhats, and they both put them on even though they looked ridiculous and were much too small. They sat in the old spot where their parents had sat, looking out over the field that they'd run through throughout their childhood. Then, as usual, Lucy took her hat off without even realizing. Molly laughed, prompting Lucy to laugh, and they ended up sprawled on the lawn, laughing almost hysterically. When it died down, the two of them rolled towards each other, until they were pressed side by side.

"I miss Mum and Dad Molly."

"I miss them too Lucy."

There was nothing else to say. After laying in the silence a bit, the girls got up and went back to the house. They took care of the last few things, and prepared to return to their lives. Their father and mother had built up enough money to deal with the house for a few more years until the girls could decide what they wanted to do with it. Eventually, they went their separate ways. But before they left, they put up one last picture in the house.

It was a picture they'd taken in the field. They were lying down, their wild hair spread all around them in the grass. They were holding hands and smiling, the first picture of that kind in a long while. Between them, they held that picture from long ago of Molly leading Lucy down the path. They had aged and grown together and apart countless times since then. Their own children had long since passed that age. The picture was faded and crumpled, a piece of life that they didn't remember. But, it didn't matter. They would always be Percy's Girls.


End file.
